Sunday, August 9, 2009

Every season has its special culinary celebrations: crisp, tart apples in autumn; bubbling, crusted pot pies in winter; and buttery leaf lettuces in spring. Summer heralds its own splendors. Here, I chronicle but a few of mine. What delectable, healthy or hedonistic, comestibles are you enjoying, wherever region you reside in, whatever season is visiting you now?

A marlow is a melted marshmallow dessert dating back to the late 1800s, and a popular early recipe for ice cream. Its texture is like a luxurious mousse with a very rich, lingering mouth feel. Best enjoyed with strong, clear, unsweetened tea, black coffee, or ice water.

In the top vessel of a double boiler over slowly simmering water, melt the chocolate. Slowly stir in the coffee with a wooden spoon. The mixture will be streaky, not smooth. Add marshmallow quarters, stirring constantly until they are melted. Remove from heat and pour into a large bowl. Using a whisk, beat mixture until smooth. The texture will be somewhat elastic. Allow to cool.

In a separate, large bowl, beat heavy cream until very thick, voluminous, and holds soft peaks. Beat vanilla extract vigorously into marshmallow mixture to thin the elastic texture. Pour and carefully fold into whipped cream with a large plastic spatula to ensure it is well incorporated but maintains volume. Lightly smooth surface. Seal bowl with plastic wrap and place in freezer until mixture is semi frozen, at least 90 minutes*. Remove from freezer and stir mixture briefly to remove ice crystals but maintain volume. Seal bowl again and return to freezer for final curing. Marlow will be soft-serve ready when mixture yields slightly to a spoon but is essentially solid. You can also freeze overnight, removing from freezer 10 minutes prior to serving for smoother and easier scooping. Serves 4-6.--

* Freezing times vary depending on your appliance setting, as well as how crowded your freezer is.

Thank you, dear Hema. There are far too many blogs which I love for a variety of reasons. Rather than attempt to list them all at the risk of leaving anyone out, allow me to assure you that my regard for you is more than just a summer fling.

I am enjoying Indian comestibles ;) ;) - actually, all the dark choc that I brought back, and one of those foreign comestibles is the star of my MLLA-14 entry.

Your question had me thinking, though - I think we're in that in-between period betwee the end of mangoes and the beginning of produce that comes in the later, cooler season, so nothing special right now.

Rosa - Thanks! That tomato tasted even better than it looked, almost smokey.

Thanks, Snooky. I love finding old-fashioned, forgotten treasures.

Mandira - Thank you! So good to see you. I got the marshmallows from Whole Foods, in the bakery cold case. They are Sweet & Sarah brand - very addictive. As you probably know, vegan mallows are the holy grail of confections for those who don't eat meat.

~~~

Sra - Ah, so it has taken you a month of swearing off Indian while in NY to come back to it at home. ; D

I do love mangoes and wish I could have found the Indian varieties that have been released for import over the last few years. Alas, they are still allusive.

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I cook and bake in that cute little galley kitchen up there. It's not as tidy as it used to be, and the walls are a deep tagine red now, but it's a cozy, homey space where you are always welcome to drop in. You can reach me at thewellseasonedcook AT yahoo DOT com. I'd be delighted to hear from you.